Kumon, a type of tutoring for children as young as 2 years of age, focuses on math and reading. The debate is whether or not the children that are enrolled in these classes really have an edge on learning over children that are not engaged in these rigorous drilling activities. I believe that this type of learning does promote the creativity that children get through play and other types of learning. From a teaching prospective, children with varying backgrounds will challenge the teacher to meet the educational needs of all students.
I think this type of tutoring is inappropriate for three year olds. I think the academic drive for young children has gotten out of control. Three year olds need to play outside. They need to jump in puddles and play with Play-Doh. In my opinion, its developmentally inappropriate for a three year old to write numbers. As a parent, I want my child to have academic success but she needs to learn the fundamentals of play at the age three not numbers and letters.
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